Search - we've had threads on this recently.

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maybe she's born with it, maybe it's chlorine
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disclaimer: PhD not MD

I actually think this comes down to experimentation. How do you feel training at that lower weight? If you lose too much your training suffers as you go past that sweet spot.

Pick up the book "Racing Weight" Pretty good info in there that will provide some guidance.

http://racingweight.com/index.php

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Jen

"In order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that worships him and a cat that will ignore him." - Dereke Bruce

Unfortunately, there is no nice formula for calculating your optimal race weight. I tend to have a bit of Zen philosophy when it comes to training, so my personal opinion is that if you are in tune with your body you will just know. When I was running competitively, I could easily feel a 2 pound fluctuation in weight and knew when it was time to gain or lose a pound or two.

My race weight last year was around 185.

This year it's 175 and I definitely feel the difference. I don't think I can lose anymore weight (and frankly I don't want to). I like having some beach muscles and I eat like a horse.

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Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

Honestly, your training will dictate the weight you are entering a race assuming you don't have really bad nutritional habits. As to weather or not it's optimal, that will depend on your training. :)

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-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
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For you, 150 or less.

Haha nice. I'll get right on that. I am scheduled to have one leg amputated ASAP.

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Proud member of the MSF (Maple Syrup Mafia)

I've found this advice the best. 10% fits best for triathletes. Don't kid yourselves that triathletes have "significantly" more muscle mass the runners of the same height. A few kilograms at best. So I've found 10% below Stillman's height/weight ideal for most triathletes. Not the 20% that Co was - sheesh!

http://www.serpentine.org.uk/.../advice_frank01.html
http://www.serpentine.org.uk/.../advice_frank02.html

Just a note, some of the figures in one of the articles is a little incorrect. (I think from memory the 56.2kg should be 50.2kg.)

Isn't race weight always 5 lbs. less than the lowest you think you can go?

Possibly but I never thought I could get to 165. I think I weighed 150 pounds when I was 12.

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Proud member of the MSF (Maple Syrup Mafia)

I think it was Scott Tinley who had the best and simplest advice. "Get in great shape and weigh yourself".

Nice! Along the lines of, "Don't buy upgrades, ride up grades."

For what it's worth I think Matt Fitzgerald does an excellent job discussing this question in his book Racing Weight. He addresses optimal racing weight quite thoroughly

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http://www.y-rocket.blogspot.com/

Funny, this comes out for me to exactly where I thought my race weight should be, which is 145 - 151.

I am currenlty 160 so by the time I get to my A race, I will be at 145-151, which will work well.

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"Chrissie wins because she trains really f'ing hard and races really f'ing hard and was blessed with a huge f'ing motor" Jordan Rapp

I read somewhere on this site that if you masturbate, A LOT, that you will soon reach race weight. It sounds like you are missing that component to your training right now! ;)

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The Rat Snake:
A Tribute Race at Gilbert Lake State Park, Laurens, NY May 16 2015
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No need anymore. I have this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S3C4AC908w

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Proud member of the MSF (Maple Syrup Mafia)

LOL!! Well, if that's what you are used to, you are a BIGGER man than I am!!!! Great stuff.

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The Rat Snake:
A Tribute Race at Gilbert Lake State Park, Laurens, NY May 16 2015
Follow the Rat Snake on Twitter

When people start asking your friends and family if you are sick!!!

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I see obsessed people.

This is BS. I read that about masturbating and weight loss and proceeded to up my daily "sessions" from 1 - 2/day to 4 - 5/day and I lost precisely 0kg in 4 weeks. I also developed RSI in my wrist :( so I would not recommend masturbation as a form of weight loss. Sorry.

I was going to say "Isn't it 5-10 lbs under what you are now?"

That's because you're using KGs!

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The Rat Snake:
A Tribute Race at Gilbert Lake State Park, Laurens, NY May 16 2015
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Let's play a game: On how many levels is this post hysterical?

I count at least 4 direct levels and possibly 2 indirect levels of hilarity.

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Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/

Equation for race weight:

Race weight= n-5lbs

Where n is your current weight

NOT THIS.

Is there a perfect answer for this question... probably not unless we start talking about body fat percentage; which I would assume is under 5%. But NO, it is not n-5. That is so far off it hurts to think about. I lost 15 pounds for IM Cozumel and was 3% body fat on race day. A lot of people would say that was perfect. I would not. I just raced IMWI at 10lbs less than typical weight (7.5% fat). I was happy with that but could have easily lost 2 more pounds (but let's be honest, that wouldn't have affected my overall time).

Most people live by the 8% rule. Which, if 150lbs is race weight, you can gain 12 on the offseason.

Bro, 10% rule.

I don't have much trouble staying well below the formula noted. Getting 10% below is tough. I did it for about half of last season, this year I am about 4 to 5 pounds over the formula*.9.

I am a short guy (5'7") but have a generally larger frame (wide hips and shoulders). Anecdotally, I think that I am even leaner right now at 139 - 140 than I was last season at 134 - 137. This is just based on how some clothes fit and where I am starting to see odd looking veins popping out (higher and higher up the abdomen).

With regard to results, I have PRd some this year with the extra weight (faster at 1 mile on track, faster 5k on road, slightly more power at 40k TT), but I haven't had as easy a time running in the extreme heat for sure (especially in training).

That is all anecdotal and may all be in my head, but it sure looks like I will do this year's A-race Ironman a few pounds heavier than last year's. We will just have to see where the chips fall.

Getting down to 134 requires that I am a super asshole to people that I love; I just don't want to be that guy on the CHANCE that I might be a little faster. Last time I got that low, it was facilitated by an injury that put me out for a while and allowed so major dieting while not training.

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3%? Did you miss the pink font?

No pink BUT I'm estimating the percentage. I was scary skinny... like cancer/aids looking....what we joke about as being "good race weight" on these threads. My skin literally waved in the water when I went free diving a couple days after the event.

I weighed 151lbs on race day and my body mass with no fat at all is roughly 147lbs. Hence the 3% guess.

this may be a total load of crap as a way to estimate race weight, but as a senior in high school (and active in sports) i was about 170 lbs. my ideal race weight also seems to be about 170.

I was a swimmer in high school, I'm about 30 pounds lighter than I was then. Although my body fat is probably similar. That was almost 21 years ago though.

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Ironman Certified Coach

Currently accepting limited number of new athletes

Never knew about this Stillman method before this thread. Did the calculations - for my height and based on Stillman? That's as fat as I've been in 10-12 years and the couple of times I 'ballooned' up to that weight I could feel it and it wasn't a good feeling. So that's what the average person feels like weight-wise, huh? At 10% below, it's about right on my best race weight over the last 5-7 years, so ST is right on. I'm at maybe 6% below now - OK, but still could drop a few. Overall, for me, this prediction is nearly perfect (with the -10% correction)...

When my family starts saying I'm too skinny, that is a sign I know I'm just about right.

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Dave Stark
dreamcatcher@astound.net
USAC & USAT level 2 certified coach